Singapore government tightens online security for businesses

Businesses will require a separate account to access e-government services.

The Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) of Singapore has developed CorpPass, a new log in portal for businesses.

The rollout by IDA aims to enhance security and privacy among organisations, as well as individuals who make use of the alternative SingPass account.

CorpPass allows business executives to apply for grants, or declare import, export goods. Businesses are leveraging SingPass accounts for corporate transactions at the moment, however, IDA plans to segregate the accounts to avoid mix up and protect individual data.

According to a news article, four government agencies — Singapore Customs, National Environment Agency(NEA) , Intellectual property of Singapore (IPS) and Ministry of Trade and Industry — require CorpPass accounts.

Singpass authenticates personal details and transactions, such as income tax filing and parking fine payment, made by local residents. Such accounts are easy to hack, as exemplified in with the previous cases of fraudulent work pass applications.

Recently, more than 1,500 business users have registered and activated their CorpPass accounts.

IDA plans to roll out CorpPass progressively, with more government agencies on board within the next few months. The sign in system will be made compulsory for most e-government transaction by 2017.